The burning would not stop.

I wasn't sure how long it had been. I felt like I was going to burst out in tears from the pain, but no liquid pooled in my eyes. In fact, it felt like all the fluids in my body were being dried up by the fire the venom brought.

Then, barely noticeable, my fingers cooled.

This brought me much more excitement than it should have. It started to get faster, until my arms were free from their fiery enclosure. Then it was my head, torso, and my lower half. Like magnets, they all seemed to be pulling towards my heart, and with with final gasp of pain, I felt nothing.

My eyes were closed, but even the darkness seemed different though my new eyes. Then, I remembered they would be no longer brown, but a ghastly red.

"Alice?" I heard a female voice chime. Bella's.

"She's okay," said another voice, this time male. Even with my new ears, it took no time to recognize it as Jasper's.

With his memory, his face came into mind. Still, it was blurry and warped, like a picture that came out strange. Craving to see him again, I opened my eyes. With that, the burning returned, but only in my throat.

I sat up before I even consciously decided to. "Thirsty," I croaked out, unable to even make a full sentence.

"Of course," muttered Carlisle. It would have been undetectable to my human ears, but now I heard it as if he'd said it loud and clearly. He picked up a clear bag of red liquid, which I snatched out of his hands, no longer cold to me.

I drank deeply. The blood was sweet, the thick hotness soothing the pain. When it was empty, I frowned at it and tossed it aside. My thirst was nowhere near quenched. Still, I finally took my first real look with my new eyes.

Everyone was a safe distance from me, which was understandable- Bella told me the same thing had happened after her transformation. Bella was smiling at me around Edward's protective stance. Her face seemed oddly brighter, as did everyone else's, but it only increased their beauty.

My eyes lingered on Jasper. He looked emotionless, but I could feel him radiating them- nervousness, joy, fear, relief, all mixed in.

I opened my mouth to say something, but my hands flew to my throat again. The burning flared up again.

Jasper held out a hand toward me. "Let's go hunt," he smiled brilliantly.

I couldn't help but smile back, giddy with joy. This was it. I'd overcome the hardest part. I was forever immortal, and best of all, Jasper had accepted it.

I took his hand without hesitation. It was as smooth as marble and the same temperature as mine. He pulled me up and twirled me around as I laughed. Then, I froze.

A girl was reflected in the dark window. She had dark hair and was short, like me, but that was where the similarities stopped.

She had pale skin and a slender frame. She had cheekbones and pale, pink lips. Her eyes, though, stood out the most. Blood-red, framed by dark lashes. She looked dainty and beautiful and everything I wasn't. And I loved it.

I didn't realize I'd started to reach forward to press my hand against the glass. Suddenly, it shattered and broke.

I looked at my hand. I hadn't pushed that hard. I guessed all this strength was something I had to get used to, but the thought didn't dampen my spirits at all.

My throat burned again, bothering me like a fussy child. "You can admire yourself later," Edward teased. "Go hunt."

"Okay," I said, and turned towards the door. Immediately, I was stopped.

"Uh...Nessie is downstairs, and…" trailed off Bella.

"Oh. Yeah," I said. "How do we get down now?"

Jasper rolled his eyes, a smile on his face. Then, he lept out the window. I watched as he landed silently on his feet, and turned towards me in expectation.

I glanced down at the rocks protruding from the hard dirt and smiled. Even if I fell from the roof, I wouldn't feel any pain. So I flung myself out the window confidently, and then landed face-first on the dirt.

Everything was silent, and then Edward and Emmett burst out laughing. "It helps if you actually make an effort to land on your feet, instead of diving out the window," Edward gasped through his laughs.

"I was just testing to see if it would hurt," I said, standing up and brushing dirt off me.

"Well, it certainly hurt your ego," Edward replied.

If this had happened a few days ago, my cheeks would be flaming. "Shut up," I muttered pathetically and turned away.

Bella pushed her husband out of the way and looked out the window. "Ignore them, Alice," she said. "Just go."

I glared at the pair, still laughing at me, and turned to Jasper. "Let's run," he said, and took off into the woods.

I didn't hesitate, darting in and out of the trees while following him. Running in this new body felt more like flying, and the jumping incident was forgotten as I giggled in happiness.

Jasper stopped, and so did I. He pulled me to his chest in a tight hug, but it didn't hurt me. Then, he grasped my face and kissed me, for the first time not keeping any barriers between us. I was his and he was mine, and we were finally equal.